Photo Courtesy of Angel AlbaneseFormer Clark trustee Natalie Belverio is honored for all her work.

CLARK, NJ — Clark Library trustee Natalie Belverio resigned from her position as a trustee and was recently honored for all her work at the Library Trustee meeting Tuesday, Dec. 13. Belverio is a longtime Clark resident who has done much for the community while serving as a trustee for the past 10 years.

“Belverio was active in the Clark Education Fund,” Vice President of the Clark Township Council Angel Albanese told LocalSource over the phone. “I believe she was a founding member or an officer. Her daughter is a member of the Board of Education, so the family has been very active in the Clark school district. She was also a former president of the Friends of the Library.”

During the past 10 years, Belverio dedicated a large portion of her time to the town of Clark and her position as a trustee. As a long time resident of the town, she wanted to find a way to serve the community.

“I’ve lived in Clark for about 42 years now,” Belverio told LocalSource over the phone. “My children went through the Clark school system. I now have grandchildren attending the Clark schools. This was just another way for me to give back to the community.”

Belverio decided it was an appropriate time for her to leave the position because she felt confident that Clark is doing well and that there are wonderful people involved now.

“I served two terms as a trustee,” Belverio told LocalSource. “After 10 years, I decided it was time to go. After I retired 10 years ago, I was looking for a way to give back to the community. I also wanted to get involved with the library because books have been a passion of mine since I was a little girl. We’ve hired several directors over the years that all went into different positions, but we finally have a director now that has some really great, new programs for the community. The director is very proactive. We’ve done a lot for the schools too over the years. I helped negotiate contracts and that kind of thing. We recently celebrated our 150-year anniversary. It really was a wonderful experience.”

Belverio’s replacement, Leila Molaie, attended the last meeting and will start the new position in January. Although Belverio is sorry to leave her position, she also felt it was the right time for her to go.

“It’s a bittersweet feeling,” Belverio told LocalSource. “I really enjoyed all the time I spent as a trustee. I also feel like it’s time for me to go now that everyone is working really well together. I remember approaching Albanese 10 years ago about the position. I wanted to be a trustee for the library because of my love of books. The library is in a good place right now, which is great. I’m really happy about that. It gives me a feeling of satisfaction. We have a wonderful library, and I’m very happy with all the new programs being offered by our director. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to serve as a trustee.”

The Clark Public Library Director also expressed her gratitude to Belverio.
“Belverio was an endless source of guidance for the library,” Clark library Director Dawn Jenkin told LocalSource over the phone. “She volunteered 10 years of her time to make sure the library is the best it can be.”